Focus Earth Episode: Copenhagen

This week, Focus Earth goes live to Copenhagen, Denmark, where leaders from 192 countries agreed to chart a course of action on climate change.

WATCH VIDEO: Denmark is a Model of Sustainability.

It has been 12 years since the U.S. sat at the table in Kyoto for serious international action against climate change. Hopes were raised and then dashed, as President Bill Clinton signed an agreement to reduce our country's emissions, only to have it discarded by Congress. Eight years under the Bush Administration saw stalled, if any, action, and the U.S. entered into a kind of climate isolationism, pointing the finger at China and India to act first instead. In the meantime, the prognosis for the planet worsened. Bob talks with Jeff Sachs from Columbia University's Earth Institute and former NASA chief scientist Jim Hansen.

As President Obama takes the world stage in Copenhagen to renew America's commitment to an international effort to fight climate change, he has to be careful not to make the same mistake as his predecessors: offering more than he can deliver. Because as tough of a crowd as the world's leaders may be, his real fight on the issue of climate change is on the home front. There is mounting opposition to any kind of legislated regulations—domestic or foreign—on our CO2 emissions, and many in Congress vow to block any agreement Obama brings back from Copenhagen.

Next, the UN warns that as many as 250 million people could be displaced by 2050 because of rising sea levels, unless "aggressive measures" are taken to halt global warming. Here in the U.S., one Native American tribe is making the difficult decision to abandon its ancestral homeland on a small strip of land in Louisiana. For at least 170 years, Isle de Jean Charles—a narrow ridge of land in southeastern Louisiana's Terrebonne Parish—has been home to members of the Biloxi-Chitimacha tribe. The community was flooded five times in the past six years, and hit hard by storms they say are stronger and more frequent than ever. They now are seeing state and federal assistance to relocate to drier ground. Bob will interview Chief Albert Naquin of the Biloxi-Chitimacha and various members of the tribe.

Then, President Obama's presence in Copenhagen brings the world's power brokers to the table for concrete discussion on how to move forward. In the end, there will be some breakthroughs, some short falls, and certainly no shortage of opinions on what it all means and where we go from here. Bob will look at the highlights of the two-week conference, what came out of it and how the world reacts to the ways our leaders handled the most important climate meeting of our time. Bob will talk with U.S. Climate Envoy Todd Stern, Jeff Sachs, Jim Hansen, and Greenpeace Youth activist Brinkley Hutchins.

Finally—why Denmark? If there's one phrase that sums up the sentiments at the climate conference, it's that actions speak louder than words. And that's why holding the event in Denmark is so appropriate. Bob gets a first-hand look at why in Copenhagen, sustainability is not just an idea, it's a way of life. Hitting the famous bike trails with the Lord Mayor of the capital city, Bob learns of why the city and country can serve as an inspiration for other nations.

Don't miss this episode of Focus Earth. Check our tv schedule for local listings.

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